Duke Blue Devils men's basketball
The Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team is the college basketball program representing Duke University and one of the premier teams in the nation. The Blue Devils are widely renowned in American college sports. As the fourth-winningest men's basketball program of all-time , the team from Duke University has had great success over the past 30 years under coach Mike Krzyzewski. Duke plays in the Atlantic Coast Conference in NCAA Division I. Duke has won 4 NCAA championships (fifth all-time) and appeared in 10 Championship Games (second all-time) and 15 Final Fours (third all-time), while maintaining an NCAA-best .750 NCAA tournament winning percentage. Eleven players have been named the National Player of the Year, while 71 players have been drafted in the NBA Draft. In the 2008–2009 NBA season, Duke had more former players on NBA rosters than any other school.http://www.dukeblueplanet.com/blog.asp?bid=8&pid=264 Additionally, Duke has had 55 All-Americans and 14 Academic All-Americans. Duke has won the most Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championships with 18. Duke has also won the regular season 19 times.ACC Champions. Accessed on 29 June 2006. Duke won Southern Conference championships five times. Duke finished the season ranked No. 1 in the AP poll seven times. Duke is second, behind only UCLA, in total weeks ranked as the number one team in the nation by the AP with 110 weeks.NCAA stats from NCAA.org The Blue Devils have the second longest streak in the AP Top 25 in history with 200 consecutive appearances from 1996 to 2007, trailing only UCLA's 221 consecutive polls from 1966–1980.Florida runaway preseason No. 1. Associated Press. Accessed on 6 Nov 2006. Players awards National Players of the Year *Dick Groat (1952) *Art Heyman (1963) AP, UPI, U.S. Basketball Writers *Johnny Dawkins (1986) Naismith *Danny Ferry (1989) Naismith, UPI, U.S. Basketball Writers *Christian Laettner (1992) AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden *Elton Brand (1999) AP, NABC, Naismith, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, The Sporting News *Shane Battier (2001) AP, Basketball Times, Naismith, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, The Sporting News *Jason Williams (2001) NABC, and (2002) AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, The Sporting News *J. J. Redick (2005) Rupp, and (2006) AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, The Sporting News ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year *Art Heyman (1963) *Jeff Mullins (1964) *Steve Vacendak (1966) *Mike Gminski (1979) *Danny Ferry (1988, 1989) *Christian Laettner (1992) *Grant Hill (1994) *Elton Brand (1999) *Chris Carrawell (2000) *Shane Battier (2001) *J. J. Redick (2005, 2006) ACC Rookies of the Year *Jim Spanarkel (1976) *Mike Gminski (1977) *Gene Banks (1978) *Chris Duhon (2001) *Kyle Singler (2008) National Defensive Player of the Year *Billy King (1986) *Tommy Amaker (1987) *Grant Hill (1993) *Steve Wojciechowski (1998) *Shane Battier (1999, 2000, 2001) *Shelden Williams (2005, 2006) ACC Defensive Player of the Year (since 2005) *Shelden Williams (2005, 2006) *DeMarcus Nelson (2008) Retired Jerseys Duke has retired 13 jerseys, listed to the side. To be eligible to receive this honor at Duke, a player must graduate from Duke University and also be recognized at the national level (such as be named National Player of the Year or Defensive Player of the Year, set an NCAA record, or be named as an All-American). Team history Adapted from Duke University ArchivesAbove the Rim: Chronology. Duke University Archives. URL accessed 7 Jun 2006. In 1906, Wilbur Wade Card, Trinity College's Athletic Director and a member of the Class of 1900, introduced the game of basketball to Trinity. The January 30 issue of The Trinity Chronicle headlined the new sport on its front page. Trinity's first game ended in a loss to Wake Forest, 24–10. The game was played in the Angier B. Duke Gymnasium, later known as The Ark. The Trinity team won its first title in 1920, the state championship, by beating the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (now NC State) 25 to 24. Earlier in the season they had beaten the University of North Carolina 19–18 in the first match-up between the two schools. Trinity college then became Duke University. Bill Werber, Class of 1930, became Duke's first All-American in basketball. The Gothic-style West Campus opened that year, with a new gym, later to be named for Coach Card. The Indoor Stadium opened in 1940. Initially it was referred to as an "Addition" to the gymnasium. Part of its cost was paid for with the proceeds from the Duke football team's appearance in the 1938 Rose Bowl. In 1972 it would be named for Eddie Cameron, head coach from 1929 to 1942. In 1952, Dick Groat became the first Duke player to be named National Player of the Year. Duke left the Southern Conference to become a charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1953. The Duke team under Vic Bubas made its first appearance in the Final Four in 1963, losing 74–71 to Loyola in the semifinal. The next year, Bubas' team reached the national title game, losing to the Bruins of UCLA, who claimed 10 titles in the next 12 years. In August 1972, the NCAA hit Duke with a one-year postseason ban.ESPN – Kansas isn't alone in cutting some corners – Columnist The basketball program won it's 1000th game in 1974, making Duke only the eighth school in NCAA history to reach that figure. In a turnaround, Coach Bill Foster's 1978 Blue Devils, who had gone 2–10 in the ACC the previous year, won the conference tournament and went on to the NCAA championship game, where they fell to Kentucky. Mike Gminski ('80) and Jim Spanarkel ('79) ran the floor. Mike Krzyzewski era Mike Krzyzewski has had great success since becoming head coach in 1980. Some of his Duke teams’ accomplishments since the 1984–85 season include: :*4 National Championships (most since 1984–85) as well as two in a row in 1991 and '92, also winning in 2001 and 2010 :*11 Final Fours (most since 1984–85) as well as five in a row from 1988 to 1992 :*19 Sweet Sixteens (most since 1984–85) and nine straight from 1998–2006 :*26 NCAA tournament berths :*77 NCAA tournament wins (most ever) :*11 No. 1 seeds :*24 conference titles (12 regular season, 12 tournament), 9 of last 12 ACC Tournament Titles :*11 30-win seasons :*25 20-win seasons :*Number 1 AP ranking in 14 of the past 25 seasons :*9 Naismith College Player of the Year Awards :*9 National Defensive Players of the Year Awards :*26 AP All-Americans :*14 consensus first team All-Americans :*10 NBA top-10 picks: T-1sthttp://www.dukeblueplanet.com/blog.asp?bid=18&pid=206:Duke Begins 08-09 with NCAA-Best 14 Alums in the NBA :*21 NBA Draft first round picks Krzyzewski's teams made the Final Four in 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004 and 2010. During his 30 years as the Duke head coach, Coach K has had only five classes which did not play in a Final Four: 1984, 1985, 1998, 2008 and 2009. Duke upset the heavily favored UNLV Runnin' Rebels 79–77 in the Final Four in 1991, a rematch of the 1990 final. The team, led by Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, and Thomas Hill went on to defeat Kansas 72–65 to win the university's first NCAA Championship. Ranked #1 all season and favored to repeat as national champions in 1992, Duke took part in a game "acclaimed by many as the greatest college basketball game ever played," according to ESPN.ESPN.com: NCB – '92 loss to Duke proved UK could win againFOX Sports on MSN – NFL – Ten Best Damn unforgettable sports momentsSports – The Enquirer – March 22, 1998Kentucky vs. Duke (March 28, 1992) In the Elite Eight, Duke met the Rick Pitino-led Kentucky Wildcats. It appeared Kentucky had sealed the win in overtime when guard Sean Woods hit a running shot off the glass in the lane to put Kentucky up by one with 2.1 seconds left on the clock. After a timeout, Duke's Grant Hill threw a full-court pass to Christian Laettner. Laettner took a dribble and nailed a turn-around jumper at the buzzer to send Duke into the Final Four with a 104–103 victory. To the Duke faithful, this play will forever be known as "The Shot." The shot was named the most memorable basketball shot of all-time (including the NBA, college, and high school) by the Best Damn Sports Show Period in 2007''Best Damn Sports Show Period.'' Aired March 14, 2007. and the fifth most unforgettable sports moment of all-time across all sports in 2006.FOX Sports on MSN – Television – Best Damn's Top 50 Unforgettable Sports Moments Duke went on to defeat the Sixth-seeded Michigan 71–51 to claim its second NCAA Championship. Duke defeated Arizona 82–72 to win its third NCAA Championship in 2001, becoming one of a handful of teams in NCAA Tournament history to defeat all of their tournament opponents by double digits. Krzyzewski was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame later that year. On April 5, 2010 Duke Men's Basketball won their fourth NCAA Championship by defeating Butler 61–59. Former Duke stars such as Alaa Abdelnaby, Johnny Dawkins, Cherokee Parks, Bobby Hurley, Antonio Lang, Roshown McLeod, William Avery, Trajan Langdon, Grant Hill, Danny Ferry, Christian Laettner, Brian Davis, Elton Brand, Shane Battier, Carlos Boozer, Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy, Dahntay Jones, Daniel Ewing, J.J. Redick, Shelden Williams, Corey Maggette, Luol Deng, Josh McRoberts and Jason Williams have gone on to play in the NBA. Many of Krzyzewski's assistants and former players, such as Bob Bender, Mike Brey, Tommy Amaker, Quin Snyder, Jeff Capel, and Johnny Dawkins have become head basketball coaches at major universities. Results by season (1980–2010) thumb|right|[[Jon Scheyer vs. Long Beach State (December 2009)]] NCAA Tournament seeding history The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1979 edition. Championships Key Statistics Cameron Indoor Stadium Cameron Indoor Stadium was completed on January 6, 1940, having cost $400,000. At the time, it was the largest gymnasium in the country south of the Palestra at the University of Pennsylvania. Originally called Duke Indoor Stadium, it was renamed for Coach Cameron on January 22, 1972.Edmund M. Cameron 1902–1988 The building originally included seating for 8,800, though standing room was sufficient to ensure that 12,000 could fit in on a particularly busy day. Then, as now, Duke students were allowed a large chunk of the seats, including those directly alongside the court. Renovations in 1987–1988 removed the standing room areas and added seats, bringing capacity to 9,314. Duke's men's basketball teams have had a decided home-court advantage for many years, thanks to the diehard students known as the Cameron Crazies. The hardwood floor has been dedicated and renamed Coach K Court in honor of head coach Mike Krzyzewski, and the tent city outside Cameron where students camp out before big games is what is known as Krzyzewskiville. In 1999, Sports Illustrated ranked Cameron the fourth best venue in all of professional and college sports,SI's Top 20 Venues of the 20th Century. Sports Illustrated. 7 June 1999. and USA Today referred to it as "the toughest road game in the nation".Playing With the Big Boys: Duke to Host CU. Columbia Spectator. 5 September 2006. Today, it continues to be one of the toughest arenas to play in, evidenced by Duke's 48-2 home court record in the last three years. Current roster See also *NCAA Men's Division I Final Four appearances by coaches *NCAA Men's Division I Final Four appearances by school *NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament all-time team records References External links *Official Site – Official Site *DukeBluePlanet – Team's Site *Statistical Database- Duke Blue Devils Basketball Statistical Database *Duke Basketball Blog